Local News

Planning Commission to vote on container ordinance Monday

Ordinance would limit new containers to lots in industrial and commercial zones

By Paul Albani-Burgio

Times Staff Writer

Posted:
11/19/2017 05:33:39 PM MST

A new ordinance creating regulations for storage containers will go before the Brush Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday. Containers will only be allowed on lots in commercial and industrial zoning districts under the ordinance. (Paul Albani-Burgio / Fort Morgan Times)

Brush city staff has developed an ordinance governing the use of cargo containers in the city that would limit permanent placement of new containers to industrially and commercially zoned areas of the city but allow existing containers to stay if they meet certain standards.

An ordinance containing those regulations will be presented at a meeting of the city's Planning and Zoning Commission at 5:30 p.m. on Monday at the Brush Municipal Complex.

Under the ordinance, a cargo container would be defined as a container "designed to carry or contain freight, including semi trailer units without running gear, railroad car units and shipping containers." That definition excludes mobile homes, manufactured homes travel trailers and other metal storage boxes "not built to International Standards Organization container specifications."

An existing city ordinance states that land uses that are not listed as either a permitted use or a permitted temporary use are not permitted in the city. Cargo containers are not listed as such a use. However, the city has not been enforcing this regulation as use of cargo containers has increased in the city, which is why city council decided new regulations were necessary earlier this year.

The proposed ordinance, which the city staff sent to the Planning and Zoning Commission with a recommendation for approve would permit the placement of cargo containers for storage only in areas of the city zoned for commercial and industrial use and prohibit their placement in all other zoning districts.

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The ordinance would also require that cargo containers located on a lot that is within a commercial or industrial zoning district but adjacent to a residential zoning district be setback a minimum of five feet from the property line.

Lots in commercial zoning districts would be limited to two cargo containers while no more than four cargo containers would be allowed to be placed on lots in commercial zoning districts. However, residents or businesses hoping to place more than the allotted number of cargo containers on a lot in commercial or industrial zoning districts could apply for a special use permit to do so.

These containers behind the Brush fire station would be allowed to remain if a proposed ordinance governing containers passes provided the blue ones were painted a neutral color. (Paul Albani-Burgio / Fort Morgan Times)

The proposed ordinance also states that cargo containers should be painted a neutral color or one that matches that of the principal structure on the lot. Cargo containers would also be prohibited from being the principal structure on any lot under the ordinance, except as part of an approved "outdoor storage use" in the industrial zoning district.

Use of a cargo container for any purpose other than storage and any conversion or alteration of a container for other such use would be banned in Brush under the proposed ordinance.

Though permanent placement of cargo containers in districts that are not zoned for commercial or residential use would be prohibited under the ordinance, containers or other temporary portable storage units would be permitted to be placed in the front yard of any lot in a zoning district for up to 14 days of any one year.

The city made the move to develop regulations for containers in response to their increasing popularity as a storage option in the city. Under the ordinance, containers existing as of June 1, 2017 could remain as a "non-conforming structure" with two conditions.

The first is that the container be painted a "neutral" color or a color that matches the principal structure on the lot, as will be required of new containers. The second condition is that any existing containers located in the Special Flood Hazard Area must be in compliance with the Flood Damage Prevention Regulations of the city's municipal code.

The city's current moratorium on the placement and siting of containers, which was adopted to give the city time to develop regulations, would be repealed the day the ordinance goes into effect.

If approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission, the ordinance would then go before the city council for their approval at another public meeting and would take effect only after being approved by the council. The proposed ordinance was developed following a public open house event in which Brush residents were asked to provide input about the container issue and possible regulations. City residents will have the opportunity to offer comments on the regulations during the meeting.

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